Idaho has declared a war on wolves

Nearly 20 years ago, I served on the team that carefully captured and released the first wolves in Idaho and Yellowstone National Park. Though this reintroduction effort was heralded internationally as a significant American achievement in the recovery of endangered species, we’re in a far different place today, and especially in Idaho.

The state has been working to undermine this conservation success story by proclaiming its intentions to kill most of its 659 wolves. Starting in 2011, when the federal government granted Idaho authority over wolves, breeding pairs began declining and are now down by 50 percent. Overall, since 2011, the state’s aggressive tactics have led to the deaths of 1,000 wolves.

Wolves, it turns out, are surprisingly easy to kill, though that should not come as a surprise. For decades, stockmen, bounty hunters and government trappers killed thousands of wolves using traps and poison. Today, wolves are chased down and killed from government helicopters by shooters using high-tech weapons, GPS and radio telemetry devices, and infrared scopes.

Since last December, Idaho state officials have authorized concealed aerial-gunning programs, paid contractors to attempt to kill entire wolf packs in designated wilderness areas, allowed competitive wolf-killing derbies to take place and liberalized hunting and trapping regulations. The state’s goal is to kill as many wolves as possible as fast as possible. As Brad Corkill, a commissioner for the Idaho Department of Fish and Game, said, “If every wolf in Idaho disappeared, I wouldn’t have a problem with it.”

And state officials are just getting started. Idaho Gov. “Butch” Otter’s recently established “Wolf Control Fund and State Board” is charged with killing hundreds more wolves, with funding coming from state taxpayers. Recently, the Idaho Department of Fish and Game adopted a new predation management plan that calls for killing up to 60 percent of the wolves living in the heart of the federally protected Frank Church Wilderness. This is the largest forested wilderness in the continental United States, named in honor of one of Idaho’s greatest political leaders, the late U.S. Sen. Frank Church. Wilderness is defined as a special place set aside for wildlife, and visitors are expected to leave no trace. Now, Idaho is going to fill this wild place with traps and snares to kill wolves in hopes of increasing the number of elk for the few hunters who go there.

What is truly destructive is that state officials seem bent on perpetuating a culture of fear and loathing toward wolves. They repeat gruesome tales from mythology and fail to tell the true, full story about successful ranching in the presence of wolves, or the many reasons why the elk population has declined. And counter to the media hype over wolf attacks, livestock losses to wolves have always ranked among the lowest causes of livestock loss in the West.

I know that not everyone in Idaho hates wolves. I grew up in Idaho, and I’ve found that most Idahoans don’t know many of the facts behind the wolf conflict. I also don’t believe that rural residents are fooled by the propaganda from campaigners against the wolf.

In central Idaho’s Sawtooth National Forest — a sheep superhighway that is also wolf territory — Blaine County ranchers, county, state and federal agencies, and local wolf advocates have been working together to resolve conflicts using non-lethal wolf management and livestock husbandry methods. These methods include deterrents like livestock guard dogs and electric fencing that dramatically reduce or eliminate livestock losses while also building social acceptance for wolves. The solid results are undeniable.

For the last six years, more than 100,000 sheep and lambs have grazed across this area amid wolf packs. Yet fewer than 30 sheep have been killed in the project area during that time, and no wolves have been killed by government agencies in the project area.

Nonlethal control methods are cheaper than killing wolves, and Blaine County has the lowest rate of livestock losses in the state. Why doesn’t the state of Idaho and Idaho USDA Wildlife Services save us all some money and goodwill and make peace with wolves when such reasonable alternatives are available?

Suzanne has worked in wolf restoration in the northern Rockies since 1988, including serving as a member of the 1995/1996 USA/Canadian wolf reintroduction team. She currently oversees Defender's programs for wolf conservation and restoration in Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington, and Wyoming, and she works directly with ranchers and farmers to help livestock owners and wildlife managers devise and implement strategies to reduce wolf and livestock conflicts.

9 Responses to “Idaho has declared a war on wolves”

I am really outraged. Outraged that we can’t leave in peace with wildlife, even in a remote state like Idaho. All wildlife organizations have been campaigning for months about the situation and nothing has happened to stop this. I’ve signed all possible petitions. Are they any more to sign? Please bring them to our attention!

How would these Idahoans feel if someone chased them with a gun and shot at them? And I bet Idaho has its share of prisons, prisoners and no-good-nicks roaming the streets just like every other state in America. Leave the wolves alone and aim for the predators that rape women and children before you go after a wild animal or wolf that is doing what God meant it to do.

Perhaps we should start a tourism boycott until they change their policies on wildlife. Many people WANT to see wolves in their natural habitats and promotion of wolves would help the state more than extermination, which damages the ecosystems. I used to love to visit Idaho but I will not go there now in protest of their Wolf policies and misinformation.

Driving through upper Washington, getting ready to drive through Idaho today. We stayed at a motel last night and got into a conversation with the owners about wildlife, esp. cougars and wolves. They both said they hated wolves, and when I asked why, they said, Wolves are killing machines; they’ll kill beyond what they need to eat…they’ll wipe out a whole herd of deer and just leave the carcasses. I tried to reason it out with them, but they wouldn’t budge on their stance. *sigh*

I applaud this task to keep the wolf population from over-populating. Please do some research on how devastating this animal is with the deer, elk and sheep herds in the Idaho mountain ranges. We are not talking about extinction, but about animal management.
Those who love the wolf so much need to talk to those who live, work, own businesses, and raise families in the Idaho mountains. Walking a mile in their shoes will give you the true perspective.

It is hearbreakin too hear wots happening too our wolves! And as long as that wolf hater govenor Butch Otter is fuelin the fire and his barbaric sadistic hunters too ! Well as long as things go on and on with them in chage its gonna be non stop killing in Idaho the bloody state! And it doesn’t matter how many petitions we sign its all too no avail does anybody agree wiv me? But we can at least try and save our wolves and there wolf cubs!!!

Thank you Rod Lowe. Well put!! Management of wolves is what idaho needs!! As far as Gov. Butch Otter, he is good for this state because he is a true ranching idahoan!! He sees the big picture and as far as you out of staters refusing to visit idaho, so be it!!!! We dont want your liberal tree hugging money here!!! Go buy yourself a breeding pair of wolves in your state and let them range free from management and get back to me in about 10 years veronica!!

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